The Island Experiment

by Erica Rue

  Victoria, the Ficaran leader, and Colm, her second-in-command, marched out onto the landing pad. From what she’d gleaned of their conversation, there had been a disturbance back at the Aratian settlement while the last Flyers were being loaded with Aratian supplies. The delivery of food supplies was a big part of the deal that had established the alliance between Aratians and Ficarans.

  “They’re sure it was Brian?” Colm asked.

  “Of course it was him. That arrogant boy!” Victoria fiddled with her communicator, but only grew angrier. “He’s not answering.”

  “Should I take a Flyer and follow him?” Colm asked.

  “No, not yet. We know he’s headed to the southern island to find his father, and I doubt the trip will be long. Once he finds the corpse, he’ll return.”

  “I think he knew you weren’t going to let him take a Flyer like you promised,” Colm said.

  Lithia smirked. She had been the one to tell Dione and Brian that Victoria wasn’t going to lend him a Flyer. They’d taken one of the Flyers still being loaded with supplies at the Aratian settlement and zipped on over to look for his dad. That was the whole reason Brian had helped them when she and Dione crashed on this planet. He’d wanted a Flyer to go find his dad, and now he had one.

  She felt Colm’s eyes on her and looked back down at her manumed, scanning the words on the page but absorbing nothing. She tried to ignore him. She would wait a few hours before telling Bel and the others where Dione was. It was just a quick trip to the island, and it wasn’t like the Vens were roaming the woods there. It was perfectly safe. Lithia heard the characteristic hum of a Flyer and looked up. It was approaching for a landing, coming in quite fast.

  “Cutting it close, Sam,” she muttered to herself. No one else seemed to notice or care, but why would they? They didn’t have the flying experience that was setting off warning bells in her head.

  She watched the shuttle, waiting for it to slow. It didn’t.

  She sprang into action. “Clear the pad,” she screamed. “Out-of-control Flyer! Get inside!” The Ficarans reacted in what felt to Lithia like slow motion. Finally, they began to properly panic and hustle out of the way, some heading inside, others scrambling out of the way in what little time they had left to react.

  Fortunately, as the shuttle crashed, its trajectory kept it toward the far edge of the landing pad, away from most of the other Flyers and people.

  Unfortunately, it was right on course to crash into the Calypso.

  Lithia retreated inside a Flyer and covered her ears at the moment of impact. The crunch of metal echoed through the mountains, and the vibrations of the impact resounded through the Mountain Base.

  “Oberon,” Lithia called over her manumed, “I hope you have good insurance.”

  “What was that?” he replied. “Are you okay?”

  “You should come outside.” She would let his own eyes break the news to him.

  The Ficarans were pulling their last man from the crumpled shuttle, and somehow, everyone seemed mostly okay. They were all walking away. A few minutes later, Oberon, flanked by Bel and Zane, joined her on the landing pad.

  The shuttle was a mess, though, and the Calypso? A monstrous hole revealed the crates of the cargo bay, though she was optimistic that the engine room was intact, based on the damage. Nevertheless, this wasn’t the kind of damage that a ship recovered from. The Calypso needed to be rebuilt.

  Oberon put both hands to his forehead and pushed back against his short, dark curls before linking his fingers behind his head. He took a few steps toward the wreckage and inhaled so deeply she could see his back move.

  After another minute of mental processing, he turned around. “Was anyone injured?” he asked.

  “I don’t think so,” Lithia replied.

  “That’s good,” Oberon said, though Lithia thought his voice sounded strained.

  “What happened?” Bel asked.

  “I think I know,” Zane said, looking at some readouts on his manumed. “The shuttles all have autopilot programs the Ficarans have been using, but Sam has been taking over the landing procedures when they get in close. She lost contact with the shuttle, and it crashed.”

  “How’d that happen?” Lithia asked.

  “She’s overtaxed. The Ficarans are asking too much from her, and so are we. Translating the datacore is going to take a lot of her. I wonder if this is a result of adding that additional task to her workload,” Zane replied.

  “You mean having her translate the datacore might have caused this?” Bel asked.

  “Maybe.”

  “Then we can have her… stop the translation.” Bel sighed.

  “Aren’t AIs supposed to be able to handle this kind of thing? Not to be rude,” Lithia added to nobody in particular. She looked back to the base. Sam might be listening.

  “Sam’s not a regular AI,” Zane said. “She’s able to function at a higher level than true artificial intelligences, but she’s starting to let things slip. The flame that burns twice as bright—”

  “Burns half as long.” It was Sam, speaking through Zane’s manumed, who finished his thought. “I thought I would have more time. There’s so much to prepare before I die, but I hope that you’ll do me one final favor before you go.”

  “What do you need, Sam?” Oberon asked.

  “It’s a small task, but I’d rather not have the Ficarans handle it. And don’t worry, it won’t interfere with your journey home. I’ll give you the details soon.”

  Oberon raised his eyebrows, but acquiesced. “We’ll do our best.”

  “Thank you. Fortunately, there were no serious injuries, but I’ll be scaling back the direct control I have over the Flyers. I am sorry about your ship. I hope the damage isn’t too bad.”

  Oberon grimaced. “She’s been through a lot. I’ll see what we can do.”

  Lithia empathized. The Calypso was a beautiful ship, but the damage was more than they could repair. The nanotech could mend small breaches, but it couldn’t manufacture entire bulkheads. She knew the Calypso wouldn’t have been able to take them home, but it had at least been flight capable. Now even that wasn’t true.

  Lithia’s mourning for the most beautiful ship she had ever flown was interrupted by Bel. “Where’s Dione?”

  “She’s with Brian.” She had hoped no one would ask for a few more hours, long enough for Brian to find his father. Maybe that vague answer would give her pause.

  “Are they still with the Aratians?” Bel asked.

  Lithia looked around to make sure that Victoria and Colm were out of ear shot. They were talking with the Flyer pilot. Lithia could easily lie, but she didn’t see the point. After all, they were just going to find Brian’s father. Bel knew that was why Brian had helped them in the first place. Plus, it wasn’t like they were out in the woods fighting Vens or doing something dangerous.

  “They went to find Brian’s dad on the southern island.”

  Bel, Oberon, and even Zane tensed.

  “What?” she said. “Victoria wasn’t going to give him a shuttle, so they, uh, borrowed one on its way back from the Vale Temple. They’ll be back tonight, I’m sure.” The others still looked horrified, and Lithia got a sinking feeling in her stomach. “What’s wrong?”

  “The southern island isn’t just another piece of land,” Bel said. “It’s apparently where Jameson released all of the ‘unapproved’ creatures he was working on. That’s probably where that angler worm came from. Most things are contained on the island for now, but that place is extremely dangerous. We only have partial records of what he engineered.”

  Lithia bit her lip as Bel showed her a few highlights, including the percussor insect and the dragons. Lithia felt anxiety tighten in her chest as she thought about what was waiting for Dione and Brian on that island. “That’s not good.”

  “I’ll call her,” Bel said. “They need to come back.”

  “No, let me tell her. I talked her into this.”

  Normally, Lithia di
dn’t buy into the whole ‘bad influence’ thing, but this might be the exception that proved the rule. What had she gotten Dione into this time?

  3. DIONE

  Dione Quinn took a deep breath and stared through the viewing glass at the blue ocean sweeping beneath their shuttle. She couldn’t smell or feel the ocean breeze, but she could imagine it. Every minute they got farther away from the mainland, the lighter she felt. No Vens to kill them, no Green Cloaks to betray them. There were a few crates of supplies in the back. They had stolen the Flyer while the Aratians were packing it. Victoria was probably mad at losing the supplies on top of the Flyer.

  She looked at Brian out of the corner of her eye. Even her discomfort at being trapped with him in a shuttle was easing after a couple of hours of silence. She didn’t find silence unsettling at all. She usually enjoyed being left to her own thoughts, though unfortunately her mind kept replaying her memories of kissing Brian, followed by the memory of finding out he had kissed Lithia, too. Despite the circumstances and explanations, she couldn’t help feeling hurt. She glanced over at him once more, this time taking in his appearance. His brown hair was almost shoulder length, like hers, but darker and put up in a short ponytail. His biceps were visible under his short sleeves, and his expression showed that he, too, was lost in thought.

  She sighed and resisted that part of herself that was still attracted to him. She tried to think of something else. Normally she daydreamed about experiments she wanted to run, though here on Kepos they always seemed to have bigger real-life problems to solve.

  The buzzing of her manumed startled her.

  “Is it Victoria?” Brian asked, frowning.

  “No, it’s Lithia.” Dione answered the call. “Hey, we’re getting close to the island. How’s everything?”

  “Umm, it could be better.”

  “Is Victoria—”

  “Pissed? Oh yeah. But there are some other issues. Sam’s having some problems and accidentally crashed a shuttle into the Calypso.”

  “What?”

  “Yeah, no one got hurt. Except the Calypso.”

  “That’s good,” Dione replied. While she appreciated the update, she got the feeling that Lithia was holding something back. “Then what’s wrong?”

  “You can’t go to the southern island. It’s not safe.”

  Dione laughed. “Is anywhere on this planet safe? Are you serious right now?”

  “Yes,” Lithia said. “Put me on speaker. Brian needs to hear this, too.”

  Dione complied. “What is it?” she asked.

  “Jameson was doing all kinds of off-the-books experiments, and he put the awful things he created on that island. Please come back. We’ll find a way for you to get there safely.” Lithia sounded uncharacteristically anxious.

  “No. Victoria will never give Brian another chance, especially not now,” Dione said. “I’ve got the stun rifle. We’ll do a sweep from the air and stick close to the shuttle when we land. I think we can handle a maximute’s evil cousin.”

  Bel cut in. Dione hadn’t realized she was on the call, too. “You don’t understand.” She sounded angry. “This is nightmare island. He wasn’t designing tamable machi and pila sword trees, he was stretching the bounds of genetic engineering by creating literal monsters, Dione. Look at the file I just sent you.”

  Dione swiped through the images. “Holy crap. Is that—”

  “A freaking dragon, yes,” Lithia replied.

  “But it’s so small,” Dione said, noting the average size in the description, “and it doesn’t have wings. I think we’ll be okay. We won’t take long, I promise. In fact, we’re already here.”

  She looked at the camera feeds and saw the viridian paradise of an island untouched by man. Almost untouched. Something dark gleamed at its center, where the green canopy that covered most of the island was so sparse it was practically nonexistent.

  “Please,” Lithia begged. Dione could hear the desperation in her voice. “Come back. We’ll figure out a way to check out the island safely. Once we know more about what’s there.”

  It was Brian’s turn to reply. “Victoria will never let me do this again. This is my only chance to find my father. And when I find him, I may just be able to save my mom, too. You saw her, Lithia. I don’t have a choice.”

  There was a pause before Lithia spoke. “Do you think losing her son will do her any favors?”

  The crease in Brian’s forehead deepened. His voice was low as he turned and spoke directly to Dione. “I know I’m not your favorite person right now, but you know what this means to me.”

  He was pleading with her. She was the one flying the shuttle. She could lock him out of the controls, turn them around, and take them home. They could find another way. Once they had more information about the creatures on the island, they could come up with a plan. Wasn’t it always better to have a plan?

  “Hang on. Professor Oberon wants to say something,” Lithia said.

  Dione braced herself.

  “Dione, listen to me.” The professor’s tone was uncharacteristically harsh. “It’s not safe. Turn around and come back. We’ll find another way.” She said nothing, so he continued. “I hope that you trust me enough to know that I mean every word.”

  Dione felt like she would be sick. With his warning, every part of her screamed for her to listen. To obey. Ignoring Lithia was one thing, but the professor? He was a fair and reasonable man. A scientist she looked up to and admired like a father.

  Like a father. That was the part that really mattered. If the professor were on that island, she would try to find him, just like she had saved him from the Vens when he had been trapped in that cave.

  “I’m sorry,” she said softly. “I have to do this.” Dione ended the call and silenced her manumed. She wiped away a tear. She’d explain everything to Oberon later.

  Brian looked Dione in the eyes for the first time the entire trip. “Thank you.”

  She gave him a nod while searching for the right reply, but something else caught her eye. A dark smudge marred the crystal blue of the sky. “Is that smoke?” Dione asked.

  “I think so. It could be my father,” he said, eyes wide with hope.

  “Then let’s check it out.”

  The sooner they found Brian’s dad, the sooner she could get back to Lithia and the others. She checked her manumed. Missed calls and unread messages. She opened one with an attachment. “Nightmare island flora and fauna. You’re an idiot. Be careful.” Lithia ended her message with small image of a hand making a rude gesture. Dione smiled. Classic Lithia.

  “Take over for a bit,” she said, transferring control of the Flyer to Brian. She studied the first entry. It was a black and white sketch of a very creepy-looking spider with wings. There was no description. Maybe this one had never been brought to life. The next was some kind of bird. According to the notes, nodules at the bird’s throat lit up to attract small insects to eat and to communicate availability to potential mates. It seemed harmless until Dione read the bit about its extreme territorial nature and fondness for eating the eyeballs of creatures both dead and alive. There was no information on how many of the creatures on this island were regular animals, and how many were Jameson’s creations.

  She paused on the next entry. It was the one Bel had already sent. The dragons. Honestly, they looked kind of cute. Dione wasn’t really into reptiles, but she tried to imagine what these creatures would look like in action. The bifurcated tail looked sharp. Even if they couldn’t fly, that tail and those teeth could do some serious damage. The hide looked tough. The description said it was fireproof, which made sense.

  “Look at that!” Brian’s eyes were fixed on a massive ship in the middle of the island. He flew them lower and closer, and soon Dione realized what it was. What had only been a dark gleam earlier was now clearly a ship.

  “A colonizer,” she muttered. This was the ship that had brought the colonists to Kepos. She looked it up and down. She didn’t see any physical sign
s of damage, but the smoke blocked her view in some places.

  “My dad must have found it!” Brian said.

  “Yeah,” she agreed, too lost in her own thoughts to process what he was saying. “Looks like it has three segments. I wonder if it still flies.” Dione had barely asked herself the question when she figured out that something was wrong. She hadn’t been able to see the last segment because of the smoke. In another moment, she pinpointed the problem. “There’s more than one source of smoke. A lot of fires.” Fires. She was an idiot. Such an idiot. “Brian, I don’t think this is your father’s camp. It’s—” Dione broke off mid sentence when Brian flew them over to the other side of the massive vessel.

  “There are hundreds of them,” Brian said, flying low to get a better look.

  On the opposite side of the colonizer was a sparse, blackened area dotted with small brown and pale green creatures. Dragons. The colonizer was being guarded by dragons.

  “We’re getting out of here,” Dione said, taking back control of the shuttle.

  Once she was flying, she realized how low they really were, just meters off the ground. She could make out the dragons’ faces, as they stared at the shuttle. Unsurprisingly, they perceived it as a threat. The dragons thrashed their angry tails and began to attack as best they could from the ground, spitting a thin liquid into the air. A pair of dragons hit them head on, covering the viewing glass in light brown fluid. Accelerant. She was shocked at their range, but grateful that their thrashing tails would not get anywhere close enough to ignite the shuttle.

  She heard accelerant hit other parts of the shuttle as she took them up, at last out of range.

  “Can you believe how far those things can spit?” Brian asked.

  “I guess it makes sense. Spitting cobras can spit two meters with incredible accuracy, and those were a lot bigger than a snake.”

  “I guess these have traded accuracy for distance. I hope my dad didn’t run into the dragons.”